Well tilted says it . Picked up a anvil the other day. Has not bad rebound. The face has been beat up really bad by chisels so I figured no big deal as people can be hard on stuff. Well upon future inspection while I was grinding away the pitting. I realized that the face is extremely soft and dents very very easily looks like I just bought a hundred and thirty five pound piece of cast iron

first: YOU DONT GRIND THE FACE ON AN ANVIL UNLESS YOU WANT TO MAKE IT INTO A GARDEN ORNAMENT

second: check it before you buy it, it is easy to see it is cast so find out if it is cast iron or cast steel

Ahh 

I'll back away from the grinder 

Didn't take much off at all but sitll

a 1/32" could be 100 years of use lost,

It might have a steel face, but if it was in a fire the temper may have been removed and it is just soft steel.  

or ground off by the previous owner maybe or just started out as an ASO.

what markings does it have on it?

 

38 minutes ago, the iron dwarf said:

or ground off by the previous owner maybe or just started out as an ASO.

what markings does it have on it?

 

It has next to none 

A 56 and a 13 or something 

It does have a steel free so I can tell by the spark  difference between the face and the base that is cast iron but I don't know I looked into getting some hard surfacing rodds  would that work to build up just a little bit I appreciate any advice on this thank you

I was about to say, looks like  Vulcan.

                                                                       Littleblacksmith 

Not about this anvil but I hear a lot of people say do not grind the face would a belt sander work to level the face 

No! DO NOT REMOVE MATIERIAL FROM AN ANVIL! The only time you EVER remove anything is when dressing sharp edges. If it is close enough to flat that you would even consider a belt grinder, it is NOT worth removing 100 years of use. Many of the people here actually prefer a little sway.

4 minutes ago, Sk Bjorn said:

Not about this anvil but I hear a lot of people say do not grind the face would a belt sander work to level the face 

Well.....a belt sander still removes steel from the face, and is still considered grinding the face. Yes it would level it, but then your stuck with an oversized paper weight. Or in other words, you still ruin it! I just hope your not asking this question after you did this.

                                                                                         Littleblacksmith 

C-1 beat me to it I see! Thanks c1 for making it much easier to understand and straight foreward. 

Why level the face? If it has a depression like an old nags back, that is an area that has been worn away, leveling the face off is simply wearing away the better sections. Use the sections that are good. A depression is a bonus when straightening a piece of metal.

Now that you put it out there yes in my ignorance I built upthe edges on a 75lb anvil that had been abused badly 

Well, welding the edges isn't as bad as grinding the face plumb off. A belt grinder shouldn't be a bad choice to use for grinding the welds smooth.

Do your research before you make a modification that you can't undo (easily) on a piece of equipment that costs more than a night out at McDonald's, or in other words, it's best to do your research! May we cry over a before and after pic? I am assuming you are new to the craft, its fine, 1. It's not my anvil, and 2, you now know what not to do. My guess is that the anvil really wasn't that bad, but is now worse than it was before. As stated earlier, and in just about every other thread about anvils, YOU DONT NEED SHARP EDGES!!  Not only do you not need them, you don't want them! They are more prone to chip, and aren't useful. 

Ok, off my soap box, I'm sure there will be others who will bring up the points that I missed.

                                                                                  Littleblacksmith 

Right c1, but for some reason a grinder Is never far from a welder....or at least for me!

 

Nope no b4 pics and not a good post pic  forgive me ...

Use and enjoy your anvil. It might not perfect, but trust me, you will have fun with it .  Your lucky. Some of us are using things alot less anvil shaped then yours and still make good stuff. 

ok, doesn't seem as bad as I thought...but than again, you cant see how you damaged the heat treatment of the anvil

re-reading my last post I was maybe a little harsh...hope you didn't take it too personally, sorry. if you were my best friend I would have said the same thing. Of late I haven't really been my normal self, and been a little more cranky.

                                                                                                                           Littleblacksmith

In not new to this . But you have to understand that I ground the face because of all of the massive pitting from miss use with a chisel at some point. Now I admit that now where it's at I realize that I more than likely shouldn't have done that. But Imy more than willing to work on it to repair my mistakes

I tried that at the anvil store. It didn't work  out. I says; how much for the 70 pound Fisher?  Tells me threehundred dollars because it is nice shape with flat surface and sharp edges.

So I says; but I read blacksmiths want sway back face and chipped/rounded edges. .........and that reasoning went over like a screen door on a submarine. 

He wants to know why he would charge more for a worn-out anvil as opposed to new......

I go to this national historical park and visiting with the full-time smith. Pointing out his near mint HB anvil with flat face and cripsy edges. He literally  bragged how flat the face is for an old anvil and the quality of said article.

Yea, the sway-back and beat-up corners obviously  do not hold up in an argument with a old full-time smith nor an anvil dealership. 

I should charge more for my car with rust, worn tires, leaking radiator  and 187,000 miles.

 

 

SReynolds: Yes we all like to brag about NOS stuff.  However:  Does your car work better with a leaking radiator?  Do the old manuals suggest you punch holes in your radiator before using it?  Guess it's not the same. OTOH old cars often came with explicit instructions on how to break in the engine during the first 1000 miles...

Vulcans often have soft faces anyway in my experience and so are often marked up on the faces; better to planish than to grind!  

"Not bad rebound" totally meaningless unless we know how much experience you have with anvils---(which getting a chisel scared Vulcan would seem to be low)

That is why we suggest the ball bearing test.  Simple, Cheap, Easy and provides objective results easily interpreted. 

Now the damage has been done so use the heck out of it and get it to pay for a better replacement!  Still better than a rock!

43 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said:

Still better than a rock!

Debatable.

A Good rock isn't bad really. You have the ( ASO) anvil so as Thomas pointed out, Use it until you find something better. 

I do not consider Vulcans ASOs,  just the lowest tier of real anvils (through grinding on the face rapidly changes them to an ASO).  He may get some work hardening through use also and it will teach to keep the workpiece *hot* and hammer control to avoid marring the face worse.  Vulcans are quiet anvils, a feature when trying to fly under the radar or working in a space enclosed with hard walls. They are not too my taste; but I have had friends who loved them.